3 arrested after police search, car chase crash

A car crash in Hawaiian Gardens last week ended a short, early-morning car chase that started in Rossmoor.

Hawaiian Gardens resident Reyna Olivas Vasquez, 22, was arrested by Los Alamitos police on Nov. 7 after crashing an SUV into a median on a street near Carson Street and Norwalk Boulevard, according to Los Alamitos Police Department Capt. Bruce McAlpine.

The three-minute chase capped an eventful few hours.

Prior to the chase, police had responded to the Rossmoor Highlands neighborhood after a resident reported seeing a person going through a parked car, McAlpine said.

Police arrested two juveniles after officers from Los Alamitos, Cypress and Seal Beach police departments, along with Joint Forces Training Base security, established a search area in the Highlands. Their search uncovered three other instances of theft from vehicles and a 1991 Ford Tempo reported stolen from Lakewood, according to a press release.

The juveniles were both found in hiding – one on the side of a residential home, the other on the nearby base – and arrested on suspicion of possession of stolen property and delaying a peace officer in their duties, McAlpine said. Both have since been released.

During the search, one officer found a 2008 Lexus SUV suspicious and tried to pull it over, McAlpine said. Police said Vasquez, the driver, led officers on a chase up I-605; the car was later found to have been stolen from Seal Beach, McAlpine said.

It was unclear if the two juveniles and Vasquez were related.

“Part of the investigation is trying to determine whether there’s a connection there or not,” McAlpine said. “If there isn’t a connection, then we may be able to chalk that up to just a coincidence.”

Vasquez was arrested on suspicion of possession of stolen property and delaying a peace officer in their duties, McAlpine said. He didn’t know if she was still in custody.

Car chases are rare for local police, said McAlpine, who couldn’t recall another one in recent years.

User Agreement

Keep it civil and stay on topic. No profanity, vulgarity, racial
slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about
tragedies will be blocked. By posting your comment, you agree to
allow Orange County Register Communications, Inc. the right to
republish your name and comment in additional Register publications
without any notification or payment.